


the second hand unwinds

by girlsarewolves



Series: we are made of star stuff [3]
Category: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, DC Cinematic Universe, Man of Steel (2013), Superman - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Post-Movie(s), Spoilers, Tumblr Prompt, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-21
Updated: 2016-06-21
Packaged: 2018-07-16 12:23:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 665
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7268077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/girlsarewolves/pseuds/girlsarewolves
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tap, tap, tap.</p><p>Her fingernails click loudly against the side of the sink; Lois shifts her weight from one foot to the other and grabs the packaging to reread the directions for the fifth time. Yep, they still say the same thing; nothing to be done but watch and wait.</p>
            </blockquote>





	the second hand unwinds

**Author's Note:**

> Written for tumblr user ladyinkspot, for the prompt: "Waiting impatient for something, Lois Lane." Feedback appreciated!

* * *

_Tap, tap, tap_.  
  
Her fingernails click loudly against the side of the sink; Lois shifts her weight from one foot to the other and grabs the packaging to reread the directions for the fifth time. Yep, they still say the same thing; nothing to be done but watch and wait.  
  
Just wait. And watch. Wait one to three minutes for results. One to three really, really long minutes. Watch for whatever result this one will give.  
  
_Tap, tap, tap_.  
  
The muted clanking of a pot and harsh sound of running water clue her in that Martha's in the kitchen, and she can't help but sigh because she told Martha that this was meant to be a vacation for her, Lois could take care of everything, and this little stomach bug - because that's all it is, all it could possibly be, she tells herself - doesn't change that.  
  
Although, to be fair, she has been in the bathroom for nearly twenty minutes. After two false positives she told herself third time's the charm - and whatever this one tells her, she'll believe.  
  
Because it will be negative. She's sure of it.  
  
_Tap, tap, tap_.  
  
Sunlight filters into the bathroom, giving the room a washed out yellow glow as she waits for the test to tell her 'negative, no, nada, nothing but a stomach bug or maybe bad leftovers; there's no bun in this oven.'  
  
Lois shifts her weight again, lightly kicks the floor with her toes. She hates late afternoon, when this room gets the best natural light, and all she can think about is the floor flooded and Clark smiling at her like she was the world to him.  
  
She had been the world to him. That was the last thing he told her before he left her, with a diamond ring and two false positives waiting on a negative.  
  
_Tap, tap, tap_.  
  
It had been cloudy that day, though. Overcast, a soft rain, the world outside offering the perfect mood for the storm in her brain. And Clark had come in like the sun, refusing to let anything cloud the moment.  
  
It doesn't occur to her that she's sobbing or has even made a sound or stopped clicking her nails against the counter until her face is wet and Martha's arms are wrapping around her, the older woman somehow supporting them both as Lois collapses into her. It doesn't occur to her because she hasn't broken down since the last time she held Clark; she's cried, she'd shuddered with grief, but she's always swallowed it down, made herself laugh, thought about the good moments, the time - however short- that she'd had with him.  
  
"It's okay, darling, it's okay. Just let it out," Martha whispers; fingers brush over Lois' hair, and she realizes she's spent more time with Mrs. Kent in the past two years than with her own family.  
  
The last time she saw her father they had only screamed at each other. What would he think of her now? Like this - crying over an alien? Having lived with an alien? Having loved and slept and laughed and worked with an alien? That's all her father would have seen - an alien. Not a boy from Kansas who loved his mother and loved her and loved humanity. Not the man she loved and would have spent the rest of her life with if he'd only lived to ask.  
  
That's why it's Martha here with her, not her own parents that she never even talked about with Clark.  
  
"Come on, darling," Martha says once Lois' sobs have softened, quieted, stopped rattling her entire body in Martha's arms. "Let's get you settled on the couch. And then we can talk about where to go from here."  
  
Lois swallows, gives a nod, her throat tight and raw, and she lets Martha lead her from the room. She glances back, once, at the pregnancy test on the counter.  
  
Third time's a charm, she'd told herself. She'd believe whatever it said.  
  
_Positive_.

**Author's Note:**

> So something I definitely see Lois doing is very quietly mourning Clark with occasional, very spaced out bursts of raw grief. As for the pregnancy, I've seen people speculate she might be pregnant in the DCEU - honestly, I'm not entirely sold on the theory, nor am I against it. As long as they don't go down the path of Injustice!


End file.
